The Chargers as a group let a lot of Fantasy owners down in 2012, led by Ryan Mathews and Philip Rivers. Our Jamey Eisenberg says a coaching change could breathe life into a once prolific unit.

Fantasy owners didn't get a lot of value from the Chargers in 2012. In
fact, most of their main options turned out to be busts.

Philip Rivers
was drafted as the No. 10 quarterback on average
(ahead of
Tony Romo
,
Robert Griffin III
and
Andrew Luck
,
among others). He finished as the No. 20 quarterback in standard leagues.

Ryan Mathews
was drafted as the No. 13 running back on average
(ahead of
Jamaal Charles
,
Trent Richardson
and
Doug Martin
,
among others). He finished as the No. 31 running back.

Antonio Gates
was drafted as the No. 3 tight end on average
(ahead of
Aaron Hernandez
,
Jason Witten
and
Greg Olsen
, among
others). He finished as the No. 12 tight end.

And we won't even mention
Robert Meachem
and his miserable season.

2012 Touches Leaders

939 total touches (rush attempts + receptions)

Ryan Mathews

223 (184 car., 39 rec.)

23.7%

Jackie Battle

110 (95 car., 15 rec.)

11.7%

Ronnie Brown

95 (46 car., 49 rec.)

10.1%

Malcom Floyd

56 rec.

5.9%

Curtis Brinkley

51 (39 car., 12 rec.)

5.4%

All Others

404

43.0%

Things fell apart right away for the Chargers when Mathews broke his
collarbone in training camp, and he never appeared to recover.
Vincent Brown
was also lost for the year with a broken ankle. Rivers
had one of the worst years of his career, and Gates -- despite playing
15 games -- barely finished as a No. 1 tight end thanks to three
meaningless touchdowns in the final three weeks of the season.

The lone bright spot was
Danario Alexander
,
who signed with the Chargers in Week 7 and had an amazing stretch run.
In nine games, Alexander had 37 catches for 658 yards and seven
touchdowns. He had double digits in Fantasy points in five games and
scored at least 19 points in three outings.

We hope Alexander continues to play at a high level this year, and he
should be considered a No. 2 Fantasy receiver worth a mid-round pick.
We're still going to give Mathews another chance even with the addition
of
Danny Woodhead
, but you should let
him fall to you in Round 4 or 5 instead of reaching for him. Gates,
based on a lack of talent at the position, remains a No. 1 tight end,
and hopefully he can have a rebound year. And Rivers is now a No. 2
Fantasy quarterback, but maybe the coaching change from Norv Turner to
Mike McCoy will help.

The Chargers no longer have the Fantasy firepower they did just a few
years ago when Rivers and Gates were stars,
LaDainian Tomlinson
was the best running back in the NFL and
Vincent Jackson
was a standout receiver. But the guys in place now --
even a fading Rivers and Gates -- still have potential, and we hope they
can bounce back this year.

Ryan Mathews
-- Let him fall to you

2012 Target Leaders

528 pass attempts

Malcom Floyd

85

16.0%

Antonio Gates

80

15.1%

Danario Alexander

62

11.7%

Ronnie Brown

59

11.1%

Ryan Mathews

56

10.6%

All Others

186

35.2%

Mathews has a lot of work to do before Fantasy owners can trust him. In
2012, Mathews was expected to be an elite Fantasy option. Instead, he
was among the biggest busts of the year. A broken clavicle in training
camp derailed the start of his season, and he never recovered before
suffering a second broken clavicle in Week 15. He finished the year with
184 carries for 707 yards (3.8 yards per carry) and one touchdown and 39
catches for 252 yards. In 2011, Mathews looked like a star in the making
when he had 222 carries for 1,091 yards and six touchdowns and 50
catches for 455 yards -- an average of 12.4 Fantasy points per game. But
now health is again an issue for him, as is his level of talent, which
wasn't helped playing behind a poor offensive line. The Chargers also
brought in Woodhead and kept
Ronnie Brown
,
meaning Mathews will likely come off the field on passing downs. Still,
based on potential, Mathews should be considered a low-end No. 2 Fantasy
running back, and he's worth the risk with a pick in Round 4 or 5 in the
majority of leagues.

Vincent Brown
-- Late-round flier

A lot of Fantasy owners view Brown as a potential star, and he has the
chance for a big role in the Chargers offense this year. Brown missed
the 2012 season with a broken left ankle, but McCoy said he's hopeful
Brown does well in 2013. As a rookie in 2011, Brown had 19 catches for
329 yards and two touchdowns in a limited role. Since the Chargers need
help at receiver, Brown could contribute right away. He is expected to
be featured in three-receiver sets with Alexander and
Malcom Floyd
. If Brown plays up to his potential, he could overtake
Floyd as a starting option, and keep in mind that Alexander has a long
injury history going back to his collegiate days at Missouri. We love
Alexander's upside this year, but Brown could be the breakout receiver
of this group. He is worth a late-round flier in all leagues, and we
hope Brown doesn't disappoint you if you consider him a future standout
option.

Philip Rivers
-- Coaching impact

Expected 2013 Draft Averages

Philip Rivers

155-163 overall

Ryan Mathews

48-53 overall

Danny Woodhead

148-153 overall

Danario Alexander

75-80 overall

Malcom Floyd

151-159 overall

Vincent Brown

Undrafted

Antonio Gates

80-86 overall

Rivers had the benefit of working with Turner for the past six seasons,
and most of them were good. But he probably needs a change and to hear a
different voice, and the additions of McCoy and offensive coordinator
Ken Whisenhunt will help. McCoy, especially, should have a good
influence on Rivers since the past two years he's had to adapt his
coaching style after working with
Tim Tebow
and
Peyton Manning
in Denver. He will
likely have a variety of ideas to help Rivers, and he needs it after his
play the past two years. Rivers is coming off one of the worst seasons
of his career in 2012 with 3,606 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and 15
interceptions. The passing yards and touchdowns were his lowest totals
since 2007, and he's trending in the wrong direction. Hopefully we can
see McCoy change that. But Rivers has a lot to prove, and not many
Fantasy owners are counting on him. He should be considered a No. 2
quarterback on Draft Day, and he should only be selected with a
late-round pick. If he rebounds then you have a steal, but don't
overvalue him based on name recognition.

Jamey Eisenberg has been a Senior Fantasy Writer for CBS Sports since 2006 with a focus on Fantasy Football. A University of Florida grad (class of '98), Jamey got his start in the newspaper business and...
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